Originally Posted By: pedrohoon
Re cloning the existing OS to the new SSD:

Put the new SSD in a USB or FW external enclosure, then use Disk Utility to format it as Mac OS Extended (journaled) and partition if necessary. Go to 'options' and make sure it is set as the first option in the list as a GUID partition table. Then go to the Restore tab in Disk Utility and drag the source (OSX System disk) and destination (new SSD) disks from the list on the left to the relevant boxes on the right and click restore.

Quite a good tutorial here.

Thank you! I'll use this process to go forward. I already have my new battery and RAM installed, so the SSD is the last to go in. I can't wait! FYI, the battery I linked to above operates fine, but the fit is pretty bad. It's not very flush with the laptop. If I cared more about this laptop, I'd have splurged for a little better, but this is fine for now.
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Matt